Next time you're lying down, try the Gratitude Challenge.

The Gratitude Challenge

Ahhhh. Bed. Or the floor. Or a yoga mat. Nothing beats lying down after a long day. Maybe you're not even lying down, who cares. Try this out whenever you've got a few minutes to relax.

Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths through your nose. Then, start thinking of exactly where you are (in your bed, in your house, in New York, wherever). Your exact setting. Think of the things you hear, see, smell. How did you get there? Did you drive a car? Take a bus? Walk? Try to be as detailed as you can, step-by-step, and then slowly go down the list and see if you can be grateful for every single thing that plays a part in your current setting. Think of how fortunate you are to be able to have the car that drove you there. The coffee that woke you up just enough to get out the door. Where does that door lead to? To be able to own a bed with bedsheets that's pest-free (might wanna double-check that).

Maybe you're lying down in your yoga studio after class. How fortunate are you to be able to exercise when you wish (or even when you don't)? Feels amazing to smell the herbs in the air, look down and see the sweat dripping off your limbs, tasting some that fell in your mouth. All of these senses, not everyone has them. But you do (probably). Lucky you. How fortunate are you to be able to financially afford that membership? Or that mat? Your body should be flowing with gratitude by this point.

Take it even further. Your phone, your glasses, YOUR FRIENDS, your job, the food you ate earlier, the computer you watch binge-watch Netflix on. If you look close enough, you can find a reason to be grateful for just about everything in your life.

By practicing gratitude, we can improve relationships with ourselves as well as with others. You're probably a big reason for why you have most of these things. Whether it's muscles that function, a job that pays you, or a best friend that's just a text away, you probably had to work to cultivate these things. If not, even better. Because hopefully by developing a deep-rooted appreciation for these things, you can in turn pass this admiration for life on to anyone possible. And a friend who feels appreciated by you is someone who is much more likely to stick around for the long haul. The upside of filling everything around you with appreciation has almost no limits. Imagine a world with even 1% more gratitude; the tiny changes in your everyday life could have a ripple effect throughout the lives of many.

Gratitude can be a lifelong practice that keeps on giving, as we can all surely continue to find reasons to treasure whatever may be in our physical or mental possession. We've all heard the saying "you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone". Well, for many of us, that "it" is the life that we have. And once it's gone, there's no looking back. So lie down, look inside, look around, feel, and enjoy. The more thanks we can give, the more love we can project.

Image credit: www.commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Savasana_artistic.jpg